April 2.
General Chiang Kai-shek, with! the permission of the Government, is takifig a spell of two months' leave. During this absence from headquarters Dr. Wang-Chung-hui will act as President of the Executive Yuan and will therefore be combining those responsibilities with his new duties as Foreign Minister. General Chiang Kalshek is believed to have made good progress toward recovery from the injuries sustained by him'in. the Sian adventure but it has been obvious that medical opinion was insistent on the need for longer rest If the recovery were to be as complete as the circumstances required. General Chiang Kal-shek, during the absence of Dr. H. H. Kung, as Special, Ambassador of China' at, the Coronation in London, has} acting charge of the Finance' portfolio, It is believed that that arrangement. will not be altered, for the Vice-Minister and lieutenants can readily adjust to the Ministry's needs arrangements for keeping in touch with the Generalissimo in Fenghua,—or wherever he decides to spend his Teave. Dr. Kung's absence in Europe will not be governed entirely by the Coronation celebrations. He is expected to pay a visit to the Continent, to Germany and Italy. In Germany he may also} feel disposed to undergo certain medical treatment recommended to him. "His health has not been good but the heavy burden which he! has carried during the last six months and more precludes any suggestion that it has given him' excuse for relaxation in the dis charge of his duties. Good wishes on his approaching journey will be inked with the hope that he may. find complete recovery of his health during its course. He travels by most appropriately named liner for this Coronation Year of King George VI is also the centenary of the! accession of his illustrious great grandmother, Queen Victoria The strenuous life of the statesman in China is indicated by the fact that few of these important members of the Government can be described as entirely phy-sicelly ft. The same disability is often {o be found in other adminis trations, The conclusion is thal whatever criticism may be levelled. against those who undertake ead nations and formulate policies, they cannot be said to be entirely' selfish or careless of public duty. when they so frequently disregard {the advice of their medical attendants and, it may be, lake a grim delight in' belying carefully considered diagnoses. For the Government of China this temporary change in personnel is, ina sense.
sion of confidence. It was remarked at the time of the Generalissimo's detention in Sian how. despite the gravity of the shock involved, the machinery of the! administration responded to the emergency in good trim. The fecling was that the great efforts of General Chiang Kai-shek and_his colleagues to make their organiza tion really national in thought and coherence had borne fruit. Since the Generalissimo's return to active participation in the Government, his Influence and prestige have been enhanced by the popular acclaim which greeted his safe emergence from an exceedingly delicate position, There are signs that he has recognized the desirability of consolidating that confidence in his leadership by giving the Government a broader basis in responsi bility and outlook. The fact that can now take two months well-earned leave is eloquent of the validity of this view. The Government is not exposed to special anxiety because there is every' confidence in the arrangements made for its continuance on the approved, lines.
As Chairman of the Central Political Council, Mr. Wang Ching-wel has recently made clear his entire agreement with the opposi tion which the Government presents to Communist doctrines. His return to the Council has therefore facilitated to strict continuity in policy. Nor does this attitude necessarily split-a lance for the fine eyes of Fascism, as sponsors of the anti-Communist front would aver. The other day in discussing the applica tion of such a theory to English polities, the "Morning Post" which can hardly be suspected of pro-Communist leanings, repudiated the notion that there was no difference between Fascism and Conservatism.
Fascism stands for an authoritarian and (olalitarian principle In gov" ernment. Conservatism stands. for ordered progress, liberty, tolerance, and individualism within the established framework of the British traditions and democratic institu:
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.